All is Fair in Love and War
by ForeverLovingK
Summary: Tenten: renowned for kicking ass, a cute face, and melting Neji Hyuga's ice cold heart.
1. Chapter 1

_Say my name as every color illuminates,  
We are shining,  
And we will never be afraid again. – Florence + the Machine; Spectrum_

 **One**

Sixteen year-old Tenten is not the most organized person in the morning. As it stands, she is currently wrestling her hair into its signature twin buns, a piece of toast caught between her teeth, black book-bag hanging off her shoulder. Somewhere within her, she admits that the toast is getting slightly soggy, but ignores it as she walks over to the entrance of her apartment and struggles to slip her feet into a pair of old, gray sneakers.

She supposes that there could have been a better way to start her morning, especially considering the fact that today is her first day at a new school. After having to move to a new town for economic reasons – she is an orphan, and being sixteen, officially emancipated and supporting herself – she went and registered herself as a student of Konoha High School, the comprehensive, public high school of Konohagakure. Although not quite sure what to expect, she figures it can't be any worse than her last high school, where lack of funding and a failing school district were the root of _many_ , _many_ problems.

Finally managing to tie her hair up into its buns, she allows herself to actually chew and swallow a bite of her toast before trapping it between her teeth again and fully slipping on her sneakers. She grabs the keys off the hook by the door, and gives herself one last look in the mirror hung at the entrance area of her small, one-bedroom apartment. She can't say it's her best – she's bare-faced, her brown buns are slightly messier than normal, and there may be the slightest signs of sleepiness in her chocolate brown eyes – but she convinces herself that school is no fashion show before stepping through the front door and locking it behind her.

It doesn't take long to get to the bus stop, and with the weather warming up as it does every April, she finds that she actually doesn't mind waiting. Almost before she knows it, she's on the bus and off to her first day of school. It's not until the bus stops at a red light that she glances at the time on her cell phone and realizes just how late she really is. "Holy _shit_ ," she says to no one in particular, the digital 8:00 registering fairly quickly for how tired she feels. She hears someone clear their throat and immediately bows her head and apologizes for her language. When she raises her head, she finds an old woman looking at her disapprovingly, despite her apology. She can think of nothing else to do but bow her head again and embarrassedly look away.

She is supposed to be at school a bit earlier than 8:30 to fill out some paperwork at the main office, but with a twenty minute bus ride and what would probably be ten minutes of hopelessly wandering around the building trying to figure out where everything is, she's more than likely to be late for homeroom.

From that point on, the bus ride seems to take forever, every stop aside from hers quite unnecessary, in her view. But finally, _finally_ , the bus reaches the stop down the block from her school. She rushes off and chances a glance at her phone: 8:20 on the dot. She nods to herself almost resolutely and makes her way to the glass front doors of the school. She sees the parking lot on the way in, and mentally notes that the teachers must be paid pretty good salaries if the type of cars they're driving are any indication. She can only hope that means that the school district is actually well-funded, and therefore classes are properly resourced.

She's so caught up in trying to read the signs along the hallways that she doesn't see the tall guy in front of her until it's too late. She bops her nose on some unknown part of him and lets out a small, surprised "Ow." Taking a step back, she softly massages the tip of her nose and looks up (and up and up) into a pair of piercing, seemingly pupiless gray eyes. A shiver admittedly travels down her spine at the sight, and she opens her mouth, intending to apologize, but is cut off by a very deep, "You should watch where you're going."

Caught off guard, and kind of offended, Tenten frowns and, still gently rubbing her nose, says, "I was lost and looking at the signs trying to find the main office. If you'd have been paying attention to your surroundings, I'm sure you would've seen me." The glare she receives is electric, and she feels the hair on the back of her neck standing up, but she refuses to let herself be intimidated. Instead, she continues as if this stranger's smoldering look doesn't affect her. "Now, if you wouldn't mind, could you point me in the direction of the main office? I have some paperwork to fill out."

The guy only seems to hear what he wants to hear, because he raises a dark brown eyebrow and asks, "Are you a new student or something?" Reasoning to herself that there's no sense in being sarcastic with someone she just met, she nods her head and says, "Main office, please?"

But this guy doesn't seem to hear her. Actually, if it weren't for the completely stoic look on his face, Tenten would think he's checking her out, because his eyes definitely trail down from her face to her feet and back. She can practically _feel_ him judging her. She feels her brows furrow, but tries to hold in her annoyance. She's not sure _why_ this guy seems to be judging her – she thinks a pair of light-wash jeans and a navy blue striped shirt is pretty alright – but it sure as hell does have something in her bubbling. "What's your name," he finally inquires, and Tenten lets out a slightly exasperated sigh because she really does not have time for this.

"Tenten," she says tersely, which the kid before her only seems to find amusing. "What, do you not have a last name," he asks, amusement filtering into his voice, and Tenten rolls her eyes and responds, "Actually, no. Are you going to tell me where the office is or not?"

She feels a small bit of satisfaction when she sees the smirk on his face drop just the slightest. "Aren't you at least going to ask who I am?" His words are almost teasing, but his face remains a mask behind that strange smirk of his. Tenten feels her lips twisting in a way she'd prefer they didn't, unimpressed with this sudden nuisance before her. "Quite frankly, I don't care what your name is right now. I just want to get to the office so I can finish my paperwork and find my homeroom class."

She swears the kid's lips twitch just the slightest, but he regains his composure so quickly Tenten begins to question whether it really happened. "Well then," the kid says, and his voice is strangely cold now, "the office is down the hall to your left. Glass windows. Can't miss it." And with that, he turns and walks off. Tenten audibly gasps when she sees just how long the guy's hair is – at least down to his waist. Gray eyes meet hers once more, and she swears she almost sees amusement twinkling in them before the kid turns around and keeps walking as if he didn't hear her.

It takes a moment for her to shake off the weird encounter, but when she does, she follows the guy's directions and finds the office easily. It takes her all of five minutes to finish filling out paperwork, but as soon as she hands it back into the secretary and receives her schedule, the bell for homeroom rings. She sighs and shakes her head, asks the secretary for directions, and then ventures out to find her classroom.

She finds herself really thankful that the school isn't so difficult to maneuver, because she finds her classroom relatively quickly for someone who has no clue as to where anything is. She knocks on the door with conviction, but does not enter until she hears the muffled voice coming from inside stop.

The teacher standing at the front of the room is interesting to say the least, with an old-style bowl cut and eyebrows so bushy she wonders how he manages to see behind the combination of his fringe and eyebrow hair. But he seems to see her perfectly clearly because he flashes her a bright smile and says, "Ah, you must be our new student. Welcome! I was just telling the class we were expecting you. Impeccable timing, really." His voice is enthusiastic, and Tenten purses her lips, a bit uncomfortable with how happy this guy seems to be standing in a classroom at 8:35 in the morning. "I'm Gai-sensei, your homeroom teacher. Why don't you introduce yourself to the class?"

If not for his comment, Tenten would never have realized that she's been completely ignoring the actual rest of the class up until this point. She turns and scans the room – and finds herself surprised to meet a pair of cold, nearly pupiless, gray eyes. She tries to shake off the feeling as she bows to her classmates and says, "Hello, everyone. My name is Tenten. I just moved from Kirigakure, and uh…" She pauses, unsure what else to add. Deciding to just throw in a random fact, she shrugs and finishes, "I'm not a fan of wearing skirts, so I'm glad this school has no mandatory uniform." She chuckles, scratches the back of her neck, and blushes lightly as she scans the room again, avoiding those gray eyes that she can feel boring into her.

Her classmates seem to be an odd mix: a few kids seem to be genuinely interested in what she's saying. There're a couple of girls in the back looking at her from head to toe and whispering to each other, and surprisingly there's even a kid who looks an awful lot like Gai – down to the bushy brows and classic bowl cut. She gives the class before her a sort of nod before turning to look at her teacher again. He gives her a warm smile and says, "Thank you, Tenten. You can go have a seat, either next to Lee over there, " – he points at the kid that looks like him, who is currently giving Tenten what can only be described as a student council president smile – "or next to Neji over there." And Tenten wonders whether the stars have a role to play in the fact that Gai is pointing directly at the boy with gray eyes from earlier.

Unknowingly, she purses her lips and mentally debates where she should sit. Lee looks nice, but a bit _too_ nice, and she's not a hundred percent sure if she can deal with that all of the time. On the other hand, there's that gray-eyed kid – apparently Neji is his name. She studies the stoic expression on his face. His eyebrows aren't quirked in the slightest, and his face is relatively relaxed. Somewhere within herself, Tenten acknowledges that Neji's actually fairly handsome – all sharp jawline framed by dark brown hair; a straight nose and gentle-looking lips; cold eyes and sharp lines. She almost considers sitting next to him, but thinks about his attitude this morning and decides that Lee's overly-excited attitude is better than sitting next to someone who probably makes it feel like winter the whole year.

She makes her way over to her seat, giving Lee a kind smile as she settles in and begins pulling out her notebook for the lecture that she's sure will be starting soon. Lee gives her a bright smile in return as Gai begins to read out the day's events and important announcements. When he finishes, he nods his head in something like self-congratulations and walks out of the room, leaving them waiting for their first class to begin with a different instructor.

As soon as Gai is gone, Lee turns around and offers his hand to Tenten, which she takes in something like surprise. "I am Rock Lee," he says, eyes twinkling. Tenten thinks he has an effervescent look about him, and so she can't help it when she smiles and replies, "Tenten. Nice to meet you, Lee."

"The pleasure is all mine," Lee says, giving her a firm handshake before drawing his hand back and folding his hands on the desk. Tenten doesn't fail to notice that he sits with his back perfectly straight, and she wonders how he manages to make it look so easy. At this point in her development, she's got a bit of a perpetual slouch when she sits that makes trying to straighten her back feel painful after more than about a minute. "So you are from Kirigakure," Lee says smilingly, to which Tenten nods her head. "Ah, that is cool. I think you might be one of only a handful of students to have moved here from a different town. Konoha is very metropolis-like, but it is actually fairly small." He nods his head as if to confirm what he's saying, and Tenten raises her eyebrows in something like a question, because why does Lee not use contractions when he speaks? But she gives him a small nod of acknowledgement and humors him, replying, "Oh really?"

"Yes," comes Lee's instant reply, that smile is admittedly somewhat infectious. Tenten finds herself smiling back. Lee shakes the hair out of his eyes and adds, "I only know of three, personally, because I am friends with them. The Subaku siblings are originally from Sunagakure, but they transferred here last year." Something twinkles in his eye then, and Tenten wonders if one of the _Subaku siblings_ is extra meaningful to him. She decides against asking, and nods when Lee suggests, "I can introduce you to them at lunch, if you would like."

"I would like that," she says, giving Lee a bright smile that he returns full force. She thinks to herself that Lee may seem super happy all the time, but at the very least he's very nice and easy to talk to. She thinks choosing to sit by Lee was a good choice. _Who knows_ , she thinks to herself, _we might even become pretty good friends_.

It's with this thought in her head that she turns to see the first-period instructor walk in and set some books down on the podium at the front of the room. She clears her throat and begins lecturing on history, and Tenten finds herself completely immersed in her schoolwork.

xXOXx

When lunchtime finally arrives, Tenten lets out something akin to a sigh of relief and stretches her arms out over her head. She hears Lee chuckle beside her and looks over at him in question. "You look sleepy," is all he says before he stands and gestures for her to follow him. She does so without hesitation or comment, Lee being her only true connection in this school, and takes note of how to get to the cafeteria. The familiar bustle of students and smell of cafeteria food is something that stays constant regardless of school, she figures, because aside from the large glass windows at the end opposite from the doors and the very obviously recently-polished tiled floor, the cafeteria almost seems just like the one back in Kirigakure.

She and Lee grab food without a problem and make their way over to a surprisingly full table. More surprising than how full the table is, however, are the people sitting at it. She almost can't believe it when she spots a girl with pink hair, and another one with the same eyes as Neji. She thinks the hyperactive blond may even be in the middle of telling some super expressionless guy some highly amusing story, but she'll never be sure because the moment the group sees her alongside Lee, they fall silent.

She admits to herself that it's a bit daunting, but Lee seems to take this as a good sign, because his face backs into a big grin and he says, "Everyone, this is Tenten. She is a new student in our class who just came from Kirigakure." Tenten gives everyone a slight bow of the head, slightly disconcerted when the silence amongst them extends further. "Um, hi," she says, almost shyly, as she gives them a small wave.

That seems to do it, because the pink-haired girl breaks out into a friendly smile, and it's only then that Tenten notices just how pretty this girl is – with sparkling, emerald eyes, a button nose and skin the color of porcelain. "Hi, Tenten! Welcome to Konoha High." She stands from her seat and, surprising Tenten, reaches out a hand. "I'm Sakura. Haruno Sakura." Her smile is bright and sweet, and Tenten can't help but smile back just as kindly as she shakes her hand.

It's like catalysis; Sakura gets up and introduces herself, and soon the whole group gets up and does the same. It's dizzying trying to remember so many names – there're at least twelve people in the group; an Uzumaki Naruto here, a Nara Shikamaru there, a Hyuga Hinata somewhere, a Subaku no Temari somewhere else. It's a swirl of names and faces and she knows it's going to take her forever to learn all of their names. She's certain the only ones she'll remember clearly are Sakura and Hinata, because Sakura does remind her of a cherry blossom and Hinata has those same, nearly pupiless eyes as Neji, although much softer and kinder.

It takes a few minutes for her to actually grab a seat, but when she finally does she's almost dizzy from the different conversations going on around her. At her old school, she had maybe a group of two or three people that she sat and ate with, and she was content with that. Being in a group this large was dizzying to say the least; she couldn't figure out which conversation she wanted to add herself to. Should she listen to the hyperactive blond – Naruto's – wild story about being chased by an aggressive dog the other day? It's certainly tempting, considering how much his cerulean eyes are sparkling. But maybe she should listen to Sakura and Ino's intense bickering to figure out some reason as to why they're arguing. Or maybe she should tune in to Temari and Shikamaru's conversation, which seems to just consist of, "How is it that you always fall asleep at lunch?" to which Shikamaru replies, "You're so troublesome."

She finds herself caught in a web of conversations, unable to move to one or the other; stuck just wondering how she's supposed to get to know anyone when she can't contribute to the conversation.

Thankfully, however, something seems to divert their attention. It starts off with Naruto, who abruptly stops telling his story and proclaims loudly, "Hey, Neji! It's about time you showed up!"

Tenten can't help the way her head snaps up in the direction Naruto's looking. It's like something pulls Neji's eyes to hers, because as soon as she looks his way, he's looking at her, those strangely gray eyes boring directly into hers. Tenten thinks to herself, somewhere that feels miles away, that his eyes look kind of like the moon; uninterrupted gray. She wonders if he can actually see clearly, because honestly she doesn't _see_ the pupils in his eyes.

She doesn't realize that she actually wonders this out loud, until Neji actually responds with, "I mean, I told you myself what the office looks like, didn't I?" His sarcasm is so thick it could probably be cut with a knife, and it actually sparks the annoyance from this morning. She purses her lips and quips, just as sarcastically, "Yes, but you also walked right into me as if you didn't see me coming."

She's not sure what she expects, but whatever it is, she knows it's not for Neji to say, "Maybe if you weren't so short, you might have actually made it into my line of sight." She hates the amused triumph in his eyes, and she hates that she has nothing to say to that except maybe, "Tall or not, it says so much that you think people have to reach a certain standard for you to acknowledge they exist literally right in front of you."

Silence falls as Neji narrows his eyes at her, and Tenten narrows her eyes right back at him. She forgets all about the rest of the group until she hears Naruto go, "Wait, I'm lost. You guys know each other?"

"We've met," Tenten replies, hearing the sour note in her own tone. "I bumped into him this morning because I was trying to find the main office and, when I asked him for directions, he decided to interview me instead of just tell me where the office was."

In her peripheral vision, she catches the look on Naruto's face, and turns to face him with a question evident on her face. "Sorry," Naruto says, "It's just that, Neji never talks to _anyone_ , so it's kind of weird that he spoke to you of his own accord this morning." Tenten glances over at Neji, surprised by the news. She thought he seemed cold, but not necessarily unwilling to at the very least cut a few people with his sarcasm. Neji, in turn, shrugs and says, "Technically, I didn't do it of my own accord. She bumped into me. She had to know she was wrong."

Tenten lets out something close to a huff, disbelief bubbling inside of her. "You did a lot more than try to tell me I was wrong," she mutters, but Neji seems to hear her with no problem. Nonetheless, he says, "Would you like to repeat that." His tone is cold and hard, and Tenten is so very tempted to repeat herself, but she knows full well he heard her, and replies, "I didn't stutter. You asked my name, if I was new, if I was going to ask for _your_ name. As if I cared at the time. I just needed directions, but you took it upon yourself to play twenty-one questions with me."

Neji scoffs at this, quickly retorts, "It was really only three and one of those was rhetorical. You know, meaning you didn't have to answer." Tenten rolls her eyes so hard she thinks she sees her brain, but she shakes her head, lets out something like a sigh, and says, "Never mind. I'm not going to waste my time with someone who clearly never loses an argument, no matter how much he's losing by."

She takes her seat again – she doesn't even remember having stood up – and shakes her head. The nerve of him! To speak to her as if she were stupid, to speak to her as if she were _beneath_ him. She turns to her food, letting the silence of the table surround her in an almost peaceful manner. She hears Naruto drawl out an, "Umm, okay." And then he begins his story again, and chatter slowly resumes at the table.

Tenten thinks to herself that it can't possibly get any worse from there, and prays that lunch does go by uneventfully from that point on. But of course, it's just her luck that five minutes later she's approached by a group of girls. She's surprised to see one in a crop top – simply because this is a school and normally schools have (some pretty sexist, in her opinion) dress codes – but finds that the top is cute, and she wouldn't mind finding out where the girl got it.

On either side of the girl with the crop top are a couple of girls, one with hair so flaming red Tenten can't help the way her eyes widen at the sight of it, and another one with jet-black hair in a braid that trails down to her waist. At first, Tenten thinks they're friends of the people she's sitting with, and so she thinks this group of girls is going to talk to someone sitting near her. She's therefore caught off guard when the table falls silent and the girl in the crop top – now that Tenten gets a good look at her, she notices that the girl has a dyed-blue pixie cut framing her face cutely, and black, matte, lipstick applied – addresses her. "Yo, new girl."

She raises an eyebrow, mostly in surprise, but also in part because of the way it rolls off the girl's tongue; with something like venom hidden in honey. A voice that is two parts sweet and four parts sour beneath the sweetness. It feels strangely fake, and Tenten wonders why this girl she doesn't know is addressing her in such a way. "Yes," she questions, and maybe it was the wrong way to say it, because the girls giggle in a way that's definitely unkind. Is she coming across as scared or something? Because scared is the last thing she feels. Tired, yeah, and somewhat confused, but not scared.

However she comes across, the girls don't make it clear. Instead, the girl in the front of the group extends a hand and says, "I'm Ami. This," she points at the redhead, "is Karin. And this," she points at the girl with the braid, "is Hanajima." Tenten takes her hand, more so out of politeness than anything else, and gives it a light shake. This girl's smile is gorgeous, but icy, Tenten finds. Ami quickly draws her hand away and says, "Listen, um, you're new, so I'm sure it's because you don't know how things normally work around here, but Neji is off-limits."

Tenten blinks, unsure of what Ami is insinuating. "What do you mean off-limits? Is he radioactive? A biohazard? Toxic?" She's sincerely confused, but she can't help how sarcastic she sounds when she asks for clarification; she doesn't know these girls, doesn't know what they mean, and is way too tired to try and figure it out. "I'm confused," she admits, and somewhere in the back of her mind she notices how silent the cafeteria has fallen.

"Well," Ami picks up where she left off, voice starting to feel so fake it almost makes Tenten want to wipe herself free of it. "Neji is off-limits because he's mine." She looks up at Neji then, and bats her eyelashes lightly. Tenten isn't quite sure why Ami is telling her this. She doesn't really care who "belongs" to who here, especially with respect to Ami. "Um…Okay? What exactly do you want me to do about it?"

Her words finally seem to crack Ami's false sweetness, and her words come out much icier than before. "Well, _new girl_ ," she makes a face, "Neji never really speaks to anyone he doesn't know – especially girls. You're new and yet, he seems comfortable enough to argue with you. You see where I'm going with this, right?"

Tenten can see it now, so she chances a glance at Neji. Surprisingly, he actually seems annoyed, but she's not sure if that's a result of their earlier argument or of Ami's presence.

"I mean he's kind of a dick, so I'm not sure why this seems like news to you," Tenten says when she finally turns back to respond, tone coming off slightly sarcastic. Ami seems genuinely offended at her words, mouth dropping open in a fashion that leaves Tenten curious as to how her jaw can drop so low. "Are you playing dumb or are you honestly just this dense?" Her words are sharp, laced with warning, and Tenten feels herself getting fed up with her.

"I get what you're saying. You're like madly in love with Neji or whatever, though he doesn't seem too excited to see you. Cool. I'm not sure why you think I care; obviously if I'm arguing with him, I must not like him all that much." She pauses to take a slight breath, and then, mimicking Ami, says, "So now you tell me, are you playing dumb or are you honestly just this dense?"

To say that Ami is not amused by her words is probably an understatement. She's absolutely fuming, lips pursed and brow furrowed so deep that she almost is able to convince Tenten that she's a threat. Tenten can feel all of the students around them holding their breath, and she wishes they'd just mind their own business. She came to school to study and maybe make a couple of friends so she wouldn't be lonely while there. Why is it that her luck leads her to meet the worst people she could possibly meet?

"You little bitch," Ami says, eyes narrowing so menacingly that Tenten thinks she might actually do something. "You must think you're real funny, huh?" Tenten, smiling, nods. "I'm damn hilarious, but unfortunately it doesn't look like we have compatible senses of humor."

Ami appreciates that even less – so much so that she actually leans down to Tenten's eye level. Tenten thinks that if this is the best Ami can do at being intimidating, she seriously needs work. "Cute. I'll give you one last chance to start acting right. If you really _are_ smart, you'll actually take it." She blinks and gives Tenten one of those fake, too-sugary smiles. And Tenten, annoyed, leans her head on her hand and retorts, "I'm not quite sure what you mean by 'acting right', but if it means doing whatever it is you want me to do, you can stop giving me chances and just give me whatever meaningless threat you intend to give me."

Her smile only broadens at the look on Ami's face. She's beyond angry, face scrunched in, cheeks slightly pink, fists clenched at her sides as she stands to face Tenten. "Worthless bitch." She whispers it, but the cafeteria is so silent that she may as well have shouted it at the top of her lungs. "You really do think you're funny." There's a sharp chuckle from the blue-haired girl, and it seems to calm her just the slightest. But her fists are still clenched and her words still drip venom. "You better watch your fucking back, because I swear I'm going to get you." And with that she turns on her heel and practically stomps away, her girls throwing glances over their shoulders as they follow her out.

Tenten feels a sigh of relief escape her. Maybe now she can actually enjoy her lunch. Silence reigns in the cafeteria only that much longer before people start breaking out into conversations again – most of them about what they just saw happen. Tenten brushes it off in favor of eating her food, but it doesn't take long for her to feel eyes on her.

Turning her head, she sees Neji looking directly at her, something akin to interest building in his gaze. She frowns and turns her head back, pointedly ignoring him as she takes another bite of her food. She's had enough of him for today, thank you.

xXOXx

The rest of the day passes by rather uneventfully, and Tenten finds herself grateful. She doesn't think she can handle much more drama when she's already sleepy enough as is. When she steps out of her last class of the day, she can't help but to stretch out happily, a smile gracing her face as she makes her way to the glass front doors of the school.

There's a gentle, almost hesitant tap on her shoulder as she turns into the main hallway, and she glances over her shoulder to see the girl with the same eyes as Neji – Hinata, she recalls – smiling up shyly at her. When she speaks, her voice is soft, melodic, chime-like. Tenten thinks it's surprisingly pleasant. "Hello," she begins, and it's a wonder Tenten can hear her over the bustling kids around them. "I just wanted to apologize for my cousin's behavior earlier today. Neji is never really fond of anyone, but he never actually argues with anyone either. He must've been in a bad mood. I'm sorry."

She bows her head, then, and Tenten feels something like warmth in her heart. She almost can't help ruffling Hinata's hair lightly as she grins and says, "Hey, don't worry about it. No feelings were hurt, I think he just doesn't like me much." She chuckles then, and Hinata smiles in response. "But you shouldn't feel the need to apologize on his behalf, even if he is your cousin. Whatever he does wrong is on him, not on you."

Hinata nods, says, "I know, but I just felt bad because today's your first day and all, and Ami and her girls started trying to pick on you because he gave you some semblance of attention. I just wanted to make sure you were okay." Tenten smiles softly, the warmth in her chest growing just the slightest. "I'm fine, Hinata. Thank you for checking in." And when Hinata nods in something like affirmation, she thinks she may grow to like this Hinata girl, even if her eyes remind her of a pair that look down on her with all the ice of winter.

 _A/N: I'm back! I was reading through some of my old fics and realized that I never actually finished any of them. I feel like I started off with good ideas and just had poor execution. As such, I'm going to finish the fics I started back in 2009. But first, I'm going to edit and consolidate them. It's been a good three-five years since I've last updated on this site, I think, so I've had a LOT of time to improve my writing and change my style a bit here and there._

 _I deleted all of the old chapters off FF but I have them all saved onto my computer and won't be changing anything too major about them – mostly just formatting them better and editing for plot holes and such. I did change a couple of plot elements (like trying to make the characters more like themselves because WOW everyone was pretty OOC) and just some things for continuity and such. But this story will be shortened in terms of number of chapters, not in terms of what needs to happen, why, and how. So please bare with me as I go through these chapters and edit this story so that I can finish it on a good note._

 _Note that I decided to just republish the story, to eliminate the old reviews. As appreciative as I am of them, I am going to be working with a story that already had twenty chapters uploaded, and therefore don't want any spoilers lying around. I hope you understand._

 _In the meantime, if you need something to read while waiting for this, and are into kpop (my guilty pleasure), please check out my AFF: ForeverLovingK. I have a bunch of stories there (mostly oneshots, but some are actual chaptered fics) that you could check out._

 _If you're still here even after all of these years of me being gone, honestly, thank you from the bottom of my heart. And if you've left me in the past, I completely understand. For those of you who are new, understand that I am a very slow updater, but I am determined to finish, and I hope you'll take this journey with me._

 _Thanks everyone!_

 _\- K_


	2. Chapter 2

_I stopped the world  
Male or female, it make no difference  
I stop the world, world stop…  
Carry on – Nicki Minaj; Feeling Myself (Feat. Beyonce)  
_

 **Two**

Tenten settles into her school relatively quickly. Classes soon lose the appeal of their novelty and become something Tenten finds herself not particularly hating, but not quite enjoying either. Lunch periods are full of chatter, multiple conversations going on around and over her; but as time goes on, she finds that it doesn't disorient her as much as it did at first. She's especially grateful for how much Hinata makes an effort to include her in conversations, even though Hinata herself doesn't actually talk all that much. At first she's wary that it's just because Hinata feels sorry for how Neji spoke to her on her first day, but she comes to find that Hinata is also just very kind by nature, and seems to genuinely want to be her friend.

She gets to know the other girls better as well – in particular Sakura, because Sakura is a peculiar brand of outgoing; sweet and bright, a sort of intelligence twinkling in her green eyes regardless of what she's talking about, but fairly short-tempered. She learns that Temari, with her perceptive teal eyes and sandy blond hair, has a sort of lazy sarcasm that is only rivaled by Shikamaru's (who, she also comes to learn, is actually Temari's boyfriend). Conversely, Ino turns out to be a very flowery girl, constantly changing nail color and touching up her hair and makeup with the help of a compact mirror she carries around.

Alternatively, the guys Tenten has a little more trouble figuring out. She knows Naruto is always finding something to be excited about, because he never really sits still, and she knows that Naruto and Sasuke are best friends, but she honestly questions how, because Sasuke rarely ever speaks. To be quite frank, he seems more displeased by noise than interested in holding a conversation a lot of the time, but Tenten isn't exactly sure what he's feeling because he also constantly boasts an expression that makes him seem perpetually annoyed.

Shikamaru, she knows – thanks to Temari – is constantly falling asleep because he's actually an insomniac, much like Temari's redheaded, quiet brother Gaara, who she's only seen once or twice (and normally around Lee rather than Temari herself). Lee, she finds out, is far more than just super-friendly; he has a sort of willpower and determination in his eyes that is unparalleled by anyone she's ever met, and it shows in the records he's apparently set in the prefecture in track and field. When she first met him, she would never have pinned him as the athletic type, but apparently Lee was the fastest person in the school's history, and ran mile times competitive at the national level. It was humbling to find out that she sat next to one of the fastest milers in the country for most of her classes.

Neji Hyuga, on the other hand, remains shrouded in mystery. She knows nothing about him except the iciness of his words and the sharp blade of his sarcasm. She tries to reconcile a couple of days after her first day, but to no avail; he seems intent on not listening to whatever apologies she may have (even though she thinks that he was just as bad as she was that first day). She's not quite sure if it's because he just doesn't like her in particular or if he doesn't like anyone at all, because he very rarely speaks to anyone else. Naruto throws a lot of jokes and questions his way, and often times all the blond gets in return is a glance or the sideye. After a few times of witnessing this, Tenten comes to realize that looks are Neji's way of responding to him, and often times he seems more annoyed than amused. Aside from this, she has nothing to go off of.

"So Tenten," says Sakura to her right, effectively pulling her out of whatever trancelike state she's been in the last few minutes. She quietly wonders when exactly she'd started spacing out. It's only after blinking a few times that she belatedly realizes she's staring directly at Neji, and Neji's staring back at her with a hard expression, eyes icy and challenging. She quickly averts her gaze, trying her best to avoid confrontation with him – honestly she's just so _sick_ of it already – and looks over at a pair of twinkling green eyes.

"Yes," she responds, allowing a smile to grace her features as she meets Sakura's gaze. Sakura, in turn, gives her a kind smile and asks, "What are you doing next weekend? Say, next Saturday?"

Tenten blinks a few times, thinking about it. She doesn't think she has to work – one of the few weekends she actually gets off, now that she thinks about it. She gives herself a small nod of approval before responding, "I actually think I'm free next weekend. Why? What's up?" She's curious. It's only been a few weeks since she's started school here. Why is Sakura asking questions about her weekend plans already?

"The girls and I were wondering if you'd like to hang out," Sakura says, and Tenten feels herself growing more suspicious. "Like, the five of us," she questions, gesturing to herself, and then to the rest of the girls sitting at the table. The conversations all along the group seem to have come to a halt, almost as if everyone were listening to Sakura and Tenten speak. Tenten wonders what's so special about her that every time she has a conversation with someone, groups feel the need to stop and stare. She decides it's just the novelty of it all, and does her best to brush it off.

Sakura is nodding in response to her question, a noise of affirmation slipping through her lips. Tenten is silent, unsure what to say for a moment. Back in Kirigakure, she and her friends rarely hung out after school – at least until one got a job where she worked. But that doesn't really count as hanging out, in Tenten's eyes, and so the prospect of being invited out with a group of friends feels foreign to her; she's so used to being alone.

"Umm," she begins, "Am I being initiated or something?"

She's not quite sure why, but the entire table – with the exception of Neji and Sasuke – bursts into laughter. She's taken aback by the sudden noise, visibly jumping in her seat, and glances around at all of her laughing friends. "What'd I say," she asks, bewilderment as clear in her voice as she's sure it is in her face. But no one answers. As a matter of fact, when everyone calms down, Sakura starts up again.

"No, you're not being initiated. We just want to hang out with you, get to know you better. We only see you in school so far, we think it'd be cool to hang out outside of school." She pauses, gives Tenten a gentle look, her smile reaching those bright eyes of hers. "So what do you say? Will you come with us?"

Tenten wonders how she could ever say no to an invitation like that, and so with a slight nod, she says, "Yeah, sure," in as nice a voice as she can. The girls around her seem to collectively let out a breath, and Tenten can't tell if she should be flattered or concerned. But she brushes it off in favor of asking, "But really though, guys, what did I say earlier that made you all laugh the way you did?"

xXOXx

Tenten comes to see that it's another relatively slow day at school. Her classes creep by, she yawns a couple thousand times an hour, and every so often she has to fight off sleepiness – even in her favorite class. To say she is relieved when the school day is over is probably an understatement. When the school bell rings to signal the end of the day, she can't help the grin that breaks over her face. Slinging her bag over her shoulder, she walks out into the hall and heads toward the front doors of the school, though she stops abruptly when she turns into the last hallway.

At first, she's not quite sure what she's seeing. She knows that there's a familiar head of blond hair and striking moon-like eyes standing against a couple of lockers near the front door. They seem to be deep in conversation, a pair of blue eyes sparkling, as if, despite being indoors in the spring, the summer sun is shining directly onto them. It takes Tenten a few seconds longer to realize that she's actually looking at Hinata and Naruto, but once the realization hits her, she stops walking.

There're a few complaints from the students who now have to walk around her, but Tenten pretends not to hear them as she watches two of her new friends from afar. She notices that Hinata is blushing a gentle shade of pink, and Naruto is looking at her with curious eyes. They seem to be locked in some sort of silence, and then Hinata opens her mouth and says something that Tenten can't quite make out. Then Hinata's face reddens, and Naruto gives Hinata his trademark grin, nodding his head in something like agreement. Tenten can't hear a word, and somehow she feels like she knows what's just happened.

Smiling to herself in a way that she's sure is creeping out the kids around her – _"Why is the new girl standing in the middle of the hallway smiling like that?"_ – she waits for Naruto and Hinata to sink back into the crowd of exiting students and begins to trail behind them with the crowd. Once outside, she notices how Naruto turns to go in another direction, giving Hinata a smile and an enthusiastic wave that're almost shy in nature, before heading on his way. It leaves Hinata alone, blushing and smiling, and Tenten thinks she's very much onto something now as she pulls herself out of the center of the crowd of students.

She can't help what she's sure is the off-putting grin on her face when she finally reaches Hinata, excitement bubbling within her. "Did I see what I think I just saw," she asks, causing Hinata to jump in surprise. "Oh my, Tenten, please don't do that to me." She places a hand over her heart and shakes her head, and Tenten nods in response but doesn't say anything otherwise, waiting for Hinata to answer. A pair of moon-like eyes close into a soft, calming breath, and then Hinata looks straight at her and says, "I'm not quite sure what you mean."

Tenten allows her smile to drop somewhat; there's something sharp in Hinata's eyes, almost fiercely protective, and it admittedly catches Tenten off guard. But she doesn't back down. Instead, she tries a more descriptive approach. "That interaction between you and Naruto," she pauses, making a face to signal to Hinata the rest. Hinata, however, pretends to not understand her, and Tenten frowns and goes, "Did I or did I not just see you ask Naruto out?"

Caught. Hinata's caught, and Tenten can see it by the way her cheeks redden and she drops all sorts of immediate secretiveness about herself. Instead, she looks left and right, seemingly searching for someone, before grabbing Tenten and pulling her aside, away from the front doors of the school, down to the grass, and around to the side of the stairs leading up to the entrance, where no one can see them. Tenten is surprised, to say the least, but more curious than anything else.

Hinata looks around one last time before she looks back at Tenten and says, voice full of pleading, "You cannot tell _anyone_. Especially not Neji." Tenten blinks a few times, taking in Hinata's wide eyes and slight pout, and finds herself wondering what's so bad about a simple date with Naruto. She opens her mouth and asks, "But why would you not want anyone to know? Wouldn't it be nice to have the other girls helping you out or something?"

When Hinata shakes her head, Tenten finds herself at a loss. Hinata seems hesitant to offer up any answers, at first. But then she locks eyes with Tenten, and Tenten is sure that she sees the burning curiosity in them – because she's truly curious as to why Hinata would want to keep it a secret from all of her closest friends. "Neji is extremely overprotective of me," she starts, and Tenten raises both eyebrows because the last thing she was expecting to hear, especially regarding Neji Hyuga, was that he's overprotective of, well, _anything_ , let alone Hinata.

"Neji's overprotective of you," she questions, and she doesn't mean for it to sound as dumbfounded as she is, but she really can't help it. The Neji Hyuga in her mind is dark and cold and dislikes talking to people; a quiet loner who hates the mere thought of anyone else around to bother him. The fact that the same person is not only protective of Hinata, but _over_ protective shows that he has some semblance of a heart, and cares about at least a few people. Tenten figures she might be acting a little ridiculous – of course he has a heart, everyone does – but still; his stoic demeanor is so convincing of otherwise that it still comes as a bit of a slight shock that he actually _cares_ for anyone.

She sees Hinata nod her head once, and then Hinata says, "I can't tell him because he'll probably throw a fit and go after Naruto, even though I'm the one who asked him out." She blushes at her own words, and Tenten smiles warmly; how can someone be so cute? "On another note, if I tell any of the girls, it'll probably get back to Neji somehow. Sakura can't keep in whatever anyone tells her when it comes to Ino, because they're best friends, and Ino just can't keep anything in if she's riled up enough. Temari is usually the safest bet, but sometimes when her sarcasm slips, stuff she shouldn't be saying slips with it."

Tenten allows this all to sink in, ponders on it for a moment, and asks, "So you have to hype yourself up and get yourself ready for this date with no one else to help you?" She's mildly concerned about it. She's sure Hinata _can_ do it by herself, but it's always nice to have someone to talk to in the case of nerves. Hinata seems to understand the deeper meaning in Tenten's question, because she blushes lightly and says, "Well, I was going to, but seeing as you know…" She trails off, not wanting to finish the request even though Tenten is pretty certain she knows what it's going to be.

She watches for a moment as Hinata begins to twiddle her thumbs, waiting for Hinata to say it, just to be sure. But when Hinata only continues to fidget nervously, Tenten decides to relieve her stress a bit. "Of course I can help, Hinata. I'd love to, actually." The smile she gives Hinata is genuine, and she can hear a sigh of relief escape the moon-eyed girl. She laughs a bit and reaches out to ruffle Hinata's hair as she says, "I'm going to need to know where to meet you then."

At this, Hinata merely pulls out a white phone and taps on the screen a few times before handing it to Tenten. "Put in your number and I'll text you the address and time." The brunette nods and does so without hesitation, handing the phone back to Hinata just a few short moments later with a kind smile. Waving a hand, Tenten says, "Alright then, I'll be seeing you Hinata," before turning around and bumping into someone – hard.

"You're at this again," she hears as she holds her now-throbbing nose delicately; she finds herself afraid that if she keeps bumping into people she'll eventually break it. It registers that the person who speaks sounds familiar, and it's only after Tenten looks up at his face and sees that it's Neji that she scowls. "Oh, it's you," she says, and she can hear the grimace in her own voice, though she tries to hide it. "My bad. Although knowing you, you're too petty to accept any sort of apology."

And with that, she turns on her heel and walks off to the bus stop so she can make her way home.

xXOXx

Tenten finds that the next few days of school and work go by very slowly now that she has plans for the start of her weekend. It's as if time is mocking her, trying to prevent the weekend from coming. She's convinced it never will until finally, _finally_ , it's Friday at closing and she's packing up her stuff to leave work.

The small coffee shop she works at closes at seven, and Tenten is glad she has enough time to go home and gather her things for the night, seeing as she's meeting Hinata at eight. She finishes packing up her belongings, slings her bag over her shoulder, and gives her manager, Tamaki, a small wave and a gentle smile before heading out the door.

Tenten lives her life in a state of convenience and affordability. Her apartment is not the best – a one bedroom, and relatively small – but it is enough to live in. Her jobs are not the best – working at both a coffee shop and a grocery store to make ends meet – but they do the trick when it comes to paying bills. And both are on the same bus route as her apartment. She finds that she can't complain, especially considering how recently she moved here. Looking back, she's more than happy that she took a couple of trips beforehand to find jobs before actually getting to Konoha; she doesn't know how she would've been able to survive without them.

It takes roughly ten minutes to get to her apartment building from the small coffee shop, another fifteen minutes to pack up whatever she's going to need for the next day or so at Hinata's house, five minutes to double check the directions to Hinata's house via bus routes, and another two minutes to walk out to the bus stop. She'll probably be a little late, but she's sure Hinata won't mind, as Tenten is sleeping over purely for convenience.

When the next bus arrives, she hops on, scans her bus card, and takes a seat. The ride from the bus stop near her house to downtown doesn't take long, but the bus ride from downtown to the side of town that Hinata lives on seems to take forever. The further they go, the more obvious it becomes as to why. The first homes after the buildings of downtown Konoha fade out are quaint and somewhat outdated, but the farther the bus goes, the more the houses grow. Moderately small homes to average sized homes to relatively large houses until they seem to be almost absurdly large – at least to Tenten, who comes from empty pockets and, in some really dark moments, cup ramen for nights on end.

She knows from checking the route to Hinata's house by bus that she'll have to walk twenty minutes from the bus stop to get to Hinata's house, even if she gets off at the last stop heading in the right direction. By the time she steps off of the bus with her bag slung over her shoulder, the sky has already darkened to a deep blue and the houses have grown far enough apart that the lighting they emit completely fades in the trees between. Tenten would be stupid to lie to herself and say that she isn't at least a little nervous, but she figures that she'll be alright so long as she watches her back and keeps walking.

It really goes to show how calm the neighborhood is when she makes it to Hinata's house twenty minutes later, unscathed and at peace with the surrounding area. She stands outside the front gate of an absurdly large home with huge white columns at the front, a white exterior and white-trim windows, the only semblenece of color a dark-stained oak door that seems almost black in the dim lighting and the trees scattered about the front lawn. She wonders what the inside of the house looks like considering the exterior. She also wonders how the hell she didn't figure, from the bus ride and the walk to the house, that Hinata lives in no less than a mansion.

 _Well_ , she thinks, _here goes nothing, I guess._ And with that, she steps through the front gate, closing it behind her, and makes her way up to the front door of the house. She's not sure whether to knock or ring the doorbell, but eventually decides the latter on the basis that her knock would only be heard so far. It takes a few moments, but when someone finally answers the door, it's the very person Tenten was praying wouldn't see her come in.

"What are you doing here," Neji asks, brows furrowed in something like suspicion. Tenten tries her best to be friendly, despite her current relationship (or well, lack thereof) with him, and replies, "I'm spending the night here." She figures that's the wrong thing to have said as soon as Neji gives her a cold smirk and quips, "Sorry, we don't house the homeless." And then he slams the door in her face.

Tenten stands there, dumbfounded and unsure of how to respond. Should she assume the door is unlocked and try to walk right in? Or should she turn around and head home. She's admittedly slightly upset; she just bussed all the way from what is more than likely the poorest part of town to probably the most affluent part of the entire prefecture only to have the door slammed in her face. And she was _invited_!

She's maybe three seconds away from losing her shit when she hears Hinata's sweet, albeit muffled, voice from behind the door. "Nii-san that's not nice! She bussed all the way here from the other side of town. I _invited_ her! Open the door!" And she may or may not giggle a bit at how Hinata sounds when she's upset, though she admits to herself that she's surprised Hinata can say anything to Neji so aggressively.

A few brief moments later, however, the door swings open and Hinata is standing before her apologetically, scratching the back of her head in something like embarrassment. "Sorry about that, Tenten. Neji seems to be in a rough mood. But come in, come in, I'm sure you're tired from school and work and travel and all that." The laugh that follows is soft and embarrassed, but sweet nonetheless, and Tenten gives her a kind smile as she steps into the house (mansion, whatever) and removes her shoes. She sees Neji glaring at her out of the corner of her eye, but brushes it off once she notices the scale of the room she's in.

The entrance hall in itself probably has more square footage than her entire apartment, if she's honest with herself. Although the color scheme consists mostly of white and light grays, the flooring is a dark wood and the entrance hall in itself has at least two stories worth of ceiling height. Tenten is more than certain that the large windows alongside the door brighten up the space more than the sizable chandelier hanging from the ceiling ever could. Two staircases curve up to the second floor landing, which is set up more like a balcony; white, intricately designed fencing acts as a safety precaution against falling back to the first floor. What really steals the show, however, is the set of large skylights that are on either side of the chandelier, allowing for an unyielding view of the stars in the night sky.

Tenten tries to not let her jaw drop, because she is very much aware that Neji Hyuga is watching her, gauging her reaction, and she refuses to give him the satisfaction. She gives the room one last, appreciative look before she turns to follow Hinata, who has already begun her ascent up one of the staircases. She pointedly refuses to look at Neji as she makes her way up, although she can feel his cold eyes on her the whole way up.

It only takes reaching Hinata's bedroom (after what honestly feels like far too many hallways later) for Tenten to completely forget about Neji Hyuga and his cold eyes. The bedroom is huge, considering the fact that it isn't even the master (according to Hinata). The walls are a smooth lilac that is soft on the eyes, and the floors are a dark hardwood that makes the rest of the room appear that much larger. Under the foot of the king-sized bed is a purple rug that is a stark contrast to the white frame and light gray sheets of the bed. A white desk is pushed up against the wall opposite the bed, where a series of built-in shelving (also white) houses dozens of books. A large window opposite the entrance gives a view of the courtyard (because Tenten is very certain that the backyard does not have more house connected to the front of the house at the end), where a few shoots of bamboo grow next to a bench.

Tenten is pretty sure she's going to get lost in this city of a house at some point before she heads home tomorrow.

Hinata seems to sense her awe, because she giggles and places a gentle hand on Tenten's shoulder. "I figured you knew from the fact that Neji and I get dropped off by a driver every day." Tenten thinks that's only the icing on top of the cake; she turns and gives Hinata a questioning look before responding with, "I never actually get to school before you do, because I bus."

The look on Hinata's face then is almost apologetic, and Tenten feels bad because it seems as though she's insulted her. "Hey, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it any particular way. I'm just a little surprised, is all. I'm not exactly used to houses the size of small villages." She lets out a shy laugh and scratches the back of her neck, feeling her face heating up just the slightest. Hinata nods in something like understanding and says, "It's fine, don't worry about it." The subsequent smile she gives the brunette is so bright that Tenten thinks it blocks out the light of the stars.

"You can drop your stuff just about anywhere," Hinata says, making a broad sweeping motion with her arm. Tenten shuffles awkwardly to the desk chair tucked neatly into the desk (how did she not notice the sleek laptop on top of the desk before?) and sets her bag full of clothing and utilities into it before she realizes something.

"Actually, Hinata," she starts, suddenly feeling shy, "I need to shower. It's been a long day." Hinata doesn't even hesitate before pointing to a white-painted door that rests between the end of all the shelving and a couple of screen doors that presumably lead to Hinata's walk-in closet. "The bathroom's in there," she says before she plops onto her bed and checks her phone. Tenten nods her head in something like thanks and self-consciously makes her way to the bathroom with her belongings. "Extra towels are in the cubbie next to the door as soon as you walk in," Hinata calls out helpfully behind her as the door closes.

Tenten finds herself lost as soon as the door closes. _No bathroom_ , she thinks to herself, _should ever need to be this big_.

Following what seems to be the trend with the rest of the house, the bathroom is a mixture of cool and soft grays, with white trim and accents. The only burst of color is the purple bathroom set Hinata unquestionably set up herself (she finds herself smiling at the realization). To say Tenten is overwhelmed with the environment she's walked into is probably an understatement, but she brushes it aside in favor of stripping off her clothes and stepping into the (absurdly fancy) glass shower.

The water warms up to the perfect temperature pretty quickly, and Tenten thinks to herself as she's scrubbing and washing that she could probably stay in there forever. But she's also bone-tired and thinks some sleep would be fantastic.

When she finishes, she dries herself off with her own towel and wraps one of the extra around her head, and then heads over to the sink to brush her teeth. She's in her pajamas five minutes later, walking out of the bathroom with a towel still wrapped around her head.

The last thing she expects to see upon walking out is Neji Hyuga leaning against the doorframe of Hinata's room, a dark eyebrow raised and questions spilling from his mouth. Amongst the many questions that he flings Hinata's way, Tenten catches, "Why is she _here_ , Hinata?" And it does wonders for her temper.

Tenten's never really been the hotheaded type. But when it comes to Neji Hyuga, she finds that her patience runs out _very_ quickly. "Is my presence an insult to your existence or something," she asks, voice cold and eyebrow raised challengingly, matching his own expression. It seems that he only notices her then, and as soon as he does, he turns his questions to her, eyes blazing.

"What are you doing here, honestly? This isn't some hotel, no matter how fancy you might think it is. You can't just burst into this house and decide you're going to stay the night."

Tenten bristles in anger, then quips, "For the record, your loving cousin invited me, and I gladly accepted on the grounds of friendship because, unlike you, your cousin can form real friendships, and actually treats people with respect and decency."

Neji, however, seems unaffected, as he replies, "My cousin is too kindhearted for her own good. You could very well be taking advantage of her and her status for your own benefit and she would refuse to believe it even if the evidence were right in front of her." And then he scans her from top to bottom and back up, and Tenten feels her face burning with something like anger and embarrassment, because her pajamas consist of comfortable shorts and an old, large t-shirt. She's sure she looks like a commonor in a princess's tower.

She opens her mouth to retort, but is, surpisingly enough for her, cut off when Hinata speaks up. "Nii-san she knew nothing of my status when I invited her. I'm fairly certain she wasn't aware of it until she set foot in this house. I think I can be sure that she's here simply because I invited her." Her voice is calm and smooth and unwavering, and Tenten finds herself grateful.

It's ultimately his cousin's voice that shuts Neji up, and he turns to exit the room with one last look at Tenten and a warning that drips with venom. "Alright, but when she hurts your feelings, I don't want you to come crying to me about how I was right."

Tenten watches him leave in some mix of relief, lingering anger, and confusion. The door shuts behind him with finality, and when she can no longer hear his footsteps in the hallway, she turns to Hinata with a frown on her face.

"What did I ever do to piss him off so badly," she asks, genuinely curious and, admittedly, offended. There have always been people that have disliked her, and often times her smart mouth doesn't help. Yet when she looks at Neji, she doesn't see plain old dislike. He seems to genuinely not like her for everything that she is, and he doesn't even know her. She's even tried _apologizing_ to him, and still he seems to regard her as something foul. "What did I ever do for him to hate me so much?"

Hinata's face falls into a sympathetic frown, but she too doesn't seem to know, because she shrugs her shoulders and shakes her head apologetically. "I'm sure he doesn't actually hate you," she says, though Tenten isn't quite sure how to take that, because she's seen for herself how his eyes seem to catch fire when he sees her. "He might just be suffering from a bruised ego. Nii-san is very sensitive to being embarrassed, and I think you've managed to embarrass him somehow. Maybe when you first met him."

Tenten's frown deepens at the thought. What could she have said when they first met? She was sarcastic, yeah, but she was in a rush and he was playing games with her. She was just trying to get to the office as quickly as possible. She hadn't meant for anyone to actually end up disliking her, let alone hating her. And normally she wouldn't mind anyone disliking her; she's dealt with it before. But this is different; Neji Hyuga seems to really have it out for her. She's dealt with multiple people disliking her; she's never met anyone who hates her so purely.

"Try not to worry about it so much," Hinata says gently; and it's only then Tenten notices that Hinata is behind her, nudging her towards the bed. "Go get some rest, you said you've had a long day. Then wake up tomorrow energized to help me get ready for my date with Naruto." She smiles softly, and Tenten can't help but to smile in return as she nods, removes the towel from her head to hand to Hinata, and begins to make her way over to the bed.

She crawls under the sheets as Hinata heads into the bathroom, her own towel and some clothes in one arm. She's asleep before Hinata comes back out.

xXOXx

The following morning, Tenten _does_ feel significantly better. So much so that she doesn't even realize that she's up before 7 a.m. until she checks her phone after brushing her teeth. The screen flashes 6:45 a.m., and she stands there stunned at the fact that she's awake so early on a Saturday.

What's even more surprising, however, is the notification flashing on her screen, telling her that she has two messages from some unknown number. She frowns as she unlocks her phone and checks out the number that sent the texts. Based on the area code, she deduces that it's a Konoha number, and so it's certainly not one of her old friends from Kirigakure changing their number or getting a new phone.

Her curiosity burning, she opens the conversation with the new number and finds herself tremendously disappointed. If she couldn't tell who it was five minutes ago, she can definitely tell now.

 _Hinata may trust you but do not expect much from me._

And then, right beneath that one:

 _You're somewhat suspicious to me; I'm not sure how you convince people that you're so nice, but I'm not easily fooled._

Tenten sits there, quite honestly, stunned at what she's just read. She's positive that these messages came from Neji Hyuga, because frankly no one else is so openly hostile towards her (except for maybe those girls chasing after him; and she thinks to herself for a fleeting moment that maybe Neji and Ami do make a good pair). Yet she's curious as to how he got her number, and why he's texting her so early in the morning, and why he seems so upset.

Her good mood dissipates quickly at the questions swirling through her brain, and yet she can only bring herself to text him back something like a snarky explanation.

 _You don't even know me. You haven't even /tried/ to get to know me. I'm not sure what you mean by me fooling people into thinking that I'm nice, because I don't go around randomly sending people hostile text messages – that can be classified as harassment, btw – and I don't go around pretending to be someone I'm not. I'm sorry if I did something to upset you that makes you so distrustful of me, but I'm not sorry that I'm friends with your cousin and the rest of the people you call friends. They're kind people and I genuinely like them._

She isn't sure what else to add, so she sends the message just like that. She sits on the edge of the bed to wait, but it doesn't take long for her to get a response.

 _I did make an effort to get to know you, actually. On the first day of school. But you threw some smart comments my way and ignored my attempts. Also, I'm aware of how kind my friends and Hinata are. That's why I'm letting you know that I don't trust you._

Tenten tries not to groan in frustration, because Hinata is still sleeping soundly next to her. She runs her fingers through her hair – dry and wavy from having slept with it out – and tries to figure out how to respond. But nothing seems to come to her, so she shakes her head and, deciding against it, throws her phone to the edge of the bed.

"I'm going back to sleep," she says to herself suddenly. "This is not how I'm starting my day."

And then, ignoring the feeling in her gut, she crawls back under the covers and goes to sleep.

xXOXx

The next time Tenten wakes up, it's a quarter past nine in the morning and she can clearly hear Hinata bustling about in her closet. She lets out a yawn and makes her way to the bathroom, where she brushes her teeth and rinses her face free of the sleep from her eyes again. Shaking her head into wakefulness, she makes her way over to Hinata's closet.

"Good morning, Hinata," she says, not without some sort of affection. Hinata turns and smiles at her, and it's then that Tenten notices that Hinata is still in her pajamas. "I forgot to ask what time your date is," she realizes, to which Hinata giggles and says, "Don't worry about it. It doesn't start until noon, so we have plenty of time."

Tenten lets out something like a sigh of relief before asking, "Okay, so what's the game plan? How are we going about getting you ready?"

Hinata shrugs at this, says, "Well I was just going to pick out some clothes to wear, shower, get dressed, do my hair and stuff like that. There's nothing really _special_ about the way I'm going about it. I mostly just need a second opinion on my outfit, my makeup. Stuff like that." She shrugs again, and gives Tenten a small smile. Something seems to come to her though, because she suddenly gasps and says, "Oh, actually, would you mind doing my nails for me? It's difficult trying to get my right hand done."

Tenten doesn't hesitate. "Of course! That's what I'm here for, right?" She gives Hinata a bright smile that Hinata returns before they set out on getting her ready for her date.

Two hours later, Hinata is fully dressed and ready to go. In the end, they'd agreed that she would look good with a light, spring look, considering the season, the type of date, and the weather for the day. And in terms of Hinata as a person, Tenten figured that simple was best, because Hinata, to her, is a person with a calming aura; to put her in too much color or too many patterns would not seem fitting.

It's because of this that Hinata currently stands before Tenten in a navy blue, floral print dress and a pair of off-white, ankle high boots. Her makeup is simple; thin, black eyeliner to shape the upper lid of her light eyes, some mascara, and a neutral pink lip that works well with the dress she's wearing. Her hair falls to the middle of her back in soft, dark-blue waves, and her nails are simple French tips. Tenten thinks she looks absolutely stunning.

Hinata seems to think something to that extent, too, because she looks at herself in the full-length mirror in her walk-in closet and smiles a bit. The gratitude that flashes in her eyes when she meets Tenten's gaze is all the validation Tenten needs for having had to put up with Neji so much in the last twenty-four hours. She grins back brightly as Hinata gives her a small nod and begins walking out of the closet.

Tenten follows her out, watches as Hinata picks up a set of car keys and lets out a deep breath. Her smile is unwavering as the moon-eyed girl turns to her with a seemingly excited smile and says, "Well, I'm off. I'll see you when I get back, so we can talk about it."

At that, Tenten pauses, cocks her head in something like inquiry. "You want me to stay until you get back," she questions, eyebrow raised in confusion. Hinata only nods in response, unaware of the beffudlement Tenten feels.

"Of course! I need someone to talk to about it, in case it goes horribly wrong or in case it goes extremely well." Her smiles is intoxicating then, and Tenten doesn't have the heart to say no. Thus with a friendly wave and a kind smile, she watches Hinata practically bound out of her room, closing the door behind her.

It's only after she hears Hinata's footsteps turn a corner of the hallway that she allows herself to remove her belongings from and fall back into the desk chair, wondering to herself how the hell she's going to manage the next several hours without Hinata when Neji Hyuga is somewhere down the hall.

* * *

 _Hello again!_

 _Here is your second chapter, which contains all parts relevant to this particular part of the story from what were previously chapters 2-5. Next chapter will be half NaruHina, half NejiTen; I've decided that I don't really want to cut out the parts with other couples. It's kind of like taking a breather from the drama of our_ loving _couple, feel me? I promise though that this fic is NejiTen centric._

 _For any of you that have read the original fic, y'all know what's coming next haha so it's going to be around the same, just better written (if I do say so myself)._

 _I'm not sure if I'll be able to upload again soon, as classes for the spring semester start next Tuesday and I have to update a couple of my stories on AFF. But I will be back! Until then, much love!_

 _\- K_


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